At least 3 dead as Islamists mark mass killing anniv. in Egypt

August 14, 2014 - 19:34 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - At least three people were killed Thursday, Aug 14, as Egyptian security forces quashed small, scattered demonstrations by Islamist supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi marking the anniversary of the killing of hundreds of protesters, the Associated Press reports.

A protester and another person were shot dead when police and local residents clashed with protesters in Cairo's busy Mohandiseen district, a security official said, adding that nine people had been detained. A third person was killed in clashes between security forces and protesters in the Matariya neighborhood, a police official said.

In Egypt's second largest city of Alexandria, a one-time Islamist stronghold, security forces used tear gas to disperse three small protests after demonstrators set tires alight and blocked main roads while chanting against the military. At least 10 protesters were arrested, the security official said.

Another security official said assailants set fire to electrical facilities in the Nile Delta town of Abu Hamad. All three officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press, according to the AP.

After the military overthrew Morsi last summer amid massive demonstrations against his divisive yearlong rule, authorities waged a sweeping crackdown on his Muslim Brotherhood movement and other Islamists, with hundreds killed in street clashes and tens of thousands detained.